


Shepherd of Fire

by 3rdDegreeBurns



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-12 15:07:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13549884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/3rdDegreeBurns/pseuds/3rdDegreeBurns
Summary: when someone has so much of something unique, it's only natural that it's price should go up, so how much is Jaune's Soul worth exactly? When his family is killed, Jaune gets an offer he cannot refuse. His soul, for his families lives, no strings attached. Naturally, he accepts without a second thought. No one can ever call the Devil dishonest. (Jaune X Yang)





	1. Let's take a moment to break the ice

** Chapter 1  ** **– Let’s take a moment and break the ice**

“I will bring them back. All you have to do is give me what I ask”  
An 8 year old Jaune sat amidst the wreckage of his house, tear tracks staining his cheeks, his normally blonde hair dirty with ash and mud.  
In front of him, nearly beyond recognition, were his family.  
“Do we have a deal?” a cold voice asked him.  
“Yes” he replied without hesitation.  
“Good. That’s good.” The voice said. “In that case, sign here.”

* * *

 

Sara Arc looked out over the forest that was the Arc estate backyard

“Jaune” she called. “Jaune, where are you, I’ve got a job for you to do.”  
“I’ll be right there mum” Jaune’s voice coming from somewhere nearby. A flash of yellow zipped by as Jaune darted out of a bush and began to run circles around his mother.  
She reached out and grabbed Jaune by the collar, bring him to a halt in front of her.  
“Stop” she ordered. He complied.  
“I need you to go take these to the Xiao long family.” She said, handing him a basket.  
“They’re some cookies mixed with some restorative dust.  Give them to their youngest daughter. She’s got a cold and this will clear it right up. Take the eastern path. Their cottage is at the end”  
“Ok mum” Jaune said happily. “Can I have some on the way there?”  
“Sure, but only a few. They’re meant for people who are sick”  
“Yay” Jaune cheered.  
“If you go now, you should be able to make it back before dark. If you can’t, stay there for the night and come back in the morning.”  
“Ok mum. I’ll see you when I get back.” He yelled, booking it for all he was worth.

* * *

 

  
_‘brrr, it’s pretty cold, maybe I should have bought a better jacket with me’_ Jaune thought, as he walked down a dusty road.  
Night was falling pretty quickly, and it was looking as if he was going to have to stay the night.  
Tree’s loomed on all sides as the 8 year old proceeded to walk, and in the distance a lone light shone through a window.  
Darkness began to close in quickly, and Jaune chose to run the last hundred metres, covering the distance in fairly good time.  
Holding the basket in one hand, He politely knocked on the door with the other.  
The door opened to reveal a rather tall man with shocking blonde mane of hair and fiery golden eyes.  
“Ah, young master Arc. I was wondering when you might arrive” he spoke formally.  
“Hello Mr Xiao Long. I bought the cookies like my mother asked.”  
“That’s good to hear. Please, come on in.” He said, stepping aside and letting Jaune move in to the cottage.  
“Thankyou Mr Xiao Long.” Jaune said politely. The big man was pretty scary.  
“Please, just call me Taiyang” he spoke, his neutral voice and plain expression giving way to a Cheshire smile and a happy tone.  
“Here you go….sir” Jaune said, still too nervous to comply to Taiyang’s request.  
“Ah, thankyou” Taiyang commented, snatching the basket from his hands and Prancing- Yes, prancing- down the hall towards a door.  
Unsure of what to do, he simply followed Taiyang.  
“Ruby, look what the Arcs bought you~.” He practically sang as he barged through an open door.  
A little girl with black hair who looked to be about 6 years old sat on a bed surrounded by blankets,  
“What is It dad?” she asked nasally.  
“Cookies, my little princess” he said, practically jumping for joy. “They’ve got healing dust in them, so just eat them and you’ll feel much better.”

Jaune took as step back as Taiyang began to fawn over his sick daughter, and then jumped when a voice said beside him, “He’s like a big kid, isn’t he?”

“Yeah” he agreed, turning to find a blonde girl who looked to be around his age looking the father and daughter talking and laughing on the bed.  
“I’m Yang, and that’s Ruby.” She said pointing to herself, and then the girl on the bed.  
“Nice to meet you, I’m Jaune” Jaune said. “Mum told me I have to stay the night since it got dark”  
“All right, I’ll get dad to set you up a bed in the front room.” She paused for a moment before yelling “DAD.” Taiyang froze, half a cookie hanging from his mouth.  
“Yes darling?” he said hesitantly, before whipping the remainder of the cookie into his mouth.  
“Jaune’s mum told him he had to stay here for tonight. Can you set him up a bed?”  
Taiyang’s expression changed several times in the space of a few seconds, before settling on one that Jaune couldn’t identify.  
“Right this way sonny” he said stiffly, stepping past Yang and Jaune, leading the way to a room by the front door.  
Opening the door, he quickly set about making the bed, and before long, it was done.  
“here you go” he announced. “Jaune, you should be off to bed. Same with you Yang.”  
“Goodnight Mr Xiao Long” Jaune said. He trembled as Taiyang got close.  
“You don’t leave this room until I call you, got it” his voice was scarily quiet.  
“Yes sir” Jaune stammered out.  
Taiyang straightened out, his usual cheer returned.  
“Good talk. G’night Jaune.”

* * *

 

Jaune’s didn’t sleep well. His rest was interrupted several times during the night by nightmares.  
True to his word, Jaune stayed in his room until Taiyang called him the next morning, he had a quick breakfast with the family, including Ruby who was as healthy as she was happy, which was to say, very, before he decided to head off.  
“Thankyou for having me Mr Xiao Long” he called back as he waved.  
Taiyang simply waved back in response before heading back inside.

The walk home was uneventful for the %90 of the walk, but he began to notice things that were wrong.  
A big plume of smoke rose in the direction of his house.  
Trees were broken in some places, and the ground was torn up.  
Not able to understand what he was seeing, but feeling that something was wrong, Jaune broke into a sprint.  
As he rounded the last bend, and caught sight of his house, he swallowed back a gasp.  
The entire house had been level by a fire. All that remained was a smouldering ruin.  
He slowed as he came within a few metres of what used to be his front door, and walked into the centre of the ruins.  
After he saw what was there, tears began to flow down his cheeks.

His family was laid out in a neat row. Each one of them had a horrid red line on their throats, and none of them were moving.  
Sobs began to build up in his throat as he knelt by them, begging them all to wake up.  
Eventually, the sobs died down and hollow emptiness began to take their place.

“How unfortunate” a cold voice said from somewhere behind him.  
Jaune whirled around to find himself face to face (Metaphorically) with an elderly grey haired man.  
“Who are you?” Jaune shouted, his voice high with fear.  
“Bad things always seem to happen to those who don’t deserve it, don’t they?” he continued as if he hadn’t even heard Jaune.  
“Tell me, Young Arc.” He said, directly addressing Jaune this time. “What would you be willing to give if I told you I could bring them all back?”  
“Anything! Everything!” Jaune shouted at once.  
“Ah. Good. That’s exactly what I want to hear” the man said, almost gleefully. “Would you be willing to give me your soul?”  
Jaune didn’t even think. He didn’t stop to think of the consequences.  
He just went with his heart.  
“Do we have a deal?” the man asked him.  
“Yes” he replied without hesitation.  
“Good. That’s good.” The man said. “In that case, sign here.”

 

* * *

* * *

**And that's the end of the first chapter.**

**I'm beginning the uploading process of my story, "Shepherd of Fire" from FF.net right before I go away for the weekend, so you can think of this as a trial run of sorts, to see how well received this is.**  
**I've been meaning to branch out to this site for a long time, but I've only just gotten around to doing so, so hopefully everything goes great.**  
**If you've gotten this far, thank you for reading, and please, while this is the first of  many pre-written chapters, any form of feedback would be incredibly helpful.**  
**I'm always seeking to improve my writing.**

**I'll post the second chapter just after this one, but the others won't be up for a few days.**

**Once again, thanks for reading, and I hope you have a good day or night, wherever you may be in this wide world.**

**-3rdDegreeBurns**

 


	2. So my intentions are known

**Chapter 2** **-So my intentions are known**

The days that followed were the hardest. Adjusting to the fact that his family was alive and none the worst for the wear was difficult. Erasing the images of their cold bodies was even harder.  
Jaune decided to keep quiet about everything that had happened. How could he tell them what he had seen, and what he had done to bring them back?  
No, it was better this way.  
Even at 8 years old, he understood that.

“Jaune, It’s time to wake up” He jumped at the sound of his mother’s voice.  
“Ok mum” he called out, his voice too hoarse for someone his age.

 Pushing the covers back and standing up, Jaune changed out of his PJ’s and into regular clothes.  
He walked from his room to the kitchen.  
He knew he no longer had a soul, but honestly, he didn’t feel any different. Thoughts swirled through his head as he grabbed breakfast out of the pantry and began to make himself cereal.

“Jaune, your father wants to see you as soon as you’re done with breakfast. He’s out the back.”  
His mother called out from an unknown part of the house.  “Your sisters also said goodbye. They’ll be home from school in the afternoon”  
“Ok, I’ll be finished soon” he called back to her. He scarfed his food, not wanting to keep his father waiting. Standing up, he slowly began to plod along to the backyard, his shoulders hunched as if he was carrying the weight of the world.

Pushing open the back door, Jaune ambled out into the space behind the house.  
Looking around, he couldn’t see his father, and decided to wait until he arrived.  
Several minutes later, and his father still hadn’t shown up, and as Jaune contemplated going back inside, he heard a noise behind him.

Jaune turned around, and jumped back in fright as a wooden sword impaled itself in the ground, where he had been standing a few moments beforehand.  
“Well done son” a voice boomed out. Jason Arc casually jumped off the roof of the house and landed a few feet from him. On his back was a foreign wood object.

Jason Arc was, by all definitions, a warrior. He was well built, and boasted strength and speed of a master of combat. He was a warrior, forged in the heat of countless battles.  
With all that said, How was he killed?

“You have quick reflexes.” He continued. “That’s good. That means you should be able to fight fast.”  
He reached behind his back and grabbed the wooden object, proceeding to jam it into the ground.

It was a training dummy.  
“Today we start your training as a knight. You’ll learn specially from me for the next four years.”

“Ok son, I want you to grab this here sword and hit the dummy with it.” His father instructed. “Give it everything you’ve got. Show me what you’re made of.”

Jaune looked doubtfully at his father, and then at the wooden, before reaching down and pulling it out of the ground.   
Hefting it, he swung it as hard as he could at the dummy.

A solid whack echoed out over the backyard, and Jaune dropped the sword, clutching his aching hand.

“Again son, and this time, bend your knees a little bit, a keep your centre of balance.” He father instructed. “You have to use your entire body in the strike, not just your arms.”

Jaune sighed.  
This was going to be a long four years.

 

* * *

 

** 4 Years later ** ** (** _ forgive me reader, for I have sinned _ ** ) **

“I don’t know Yang. I don’t seem to be getting any better at fighting.” A 12 year old Jaune said as he lay back on the grassy hill. “I think my father is ashamed of me”

“Don’t say that” Yang scolded. “You know that’s not true.” She sat down beside him.

The hill they were on overlooked the town and their school. The island of Patch was a remarkably beautiful place. The sun shone practically all the time. The trees were green and were bearing fruit. They had a clear view of their houses. Birds flew through the sky, and insects hummed In the trees.  
It was perfect for everyone.  
Everyone but one.

Time had not made him forget what had happened that day. He doubted anything could make him forget. That was probably a good thing, if he was honest with himself.  The images burned into his mind never allowed him to lose sight of what he meant to become.

“What am I missing here? Surely it’s something?” Jaune complained.

“Have you had your Aura unlocked?” Yang asked.

“Not to my knowledge.” Jaune said. “What’s Aura?”

“Oh? You don’t know?” Jaune shook his head, his bangs hiding his eyes. “You should really start paying attention in class.”

“I know.” Jaune admitted. “I’m just trying to find ways to make myself stronger, but it doesn’t seem to be working. Anyway, what’s this Aura stuff?”

“Aura is the manifestation of our soul. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts.” Yang Answered.  
“That’s the textbook definition anyway. I’m not entirely sure what all that means.”

At this point, Jaune fell silent. He knew immediately that if Aura was the missing ingredient for what was needed to make him a better fighter, he had no chance.

“Don’t be so down. It’s your birthday tomorrow. You should be happy.” Yang said.

“I know, I know.” Jaune rolled his eyes. “Let’s get going. I want to be home before dark. My dad said he had a surprise for me.”

“Then let’s get going slowpoke” She taunted.

“You’re on. First person to the house boundaries wins” Jaune challenged.

 

* * *

 

“I………win” Jaune panted.

“No….fair” Yang panted back. “You…..shouldn’t…..Be…. allowed….to do…..Parkour ”

“Too…..Bad” Jaune retaliated.

“You…..Suck” Yang finished.

They stumbled past Yang’s house and split off as they passed the gate, Yang going inside and Jaune continuing down the road.

The walk back to more time than he would have liked, but he cleared it fairly quickly, alternating between running and jogging. His stamina was about the only thing that had improved over the last four years.

He approached the house and ran around the back, choosing to enter through the back door rather than the front.  
Pushing open the door, he called out. “Mum, Dad, I’m home”

“Stay out the back son, I’ll be right out.” His dad called from somewhere inside the house.

“Ok” Jaune yelled back, stepping backwards before running up the wall and settling down on the roof.

A few minutes later, his father walked out with an object wrapped up in black cloth.

“Jaune” he yelled. “Where are you?” he looked in every direction, except for up.

“Right here” Jaune said, jumping down and landing next to his dad with a thump.

If he was anyone else, Jaune’s Father would have jumped, but his hunter training had made him practically immune to jump scares.

“Good, you’re here” he said. “I know your birthday is tomorrow, but it’s an Arc tradition to give this to the eldest son the night before their 12th birthday.”

He unwrapped the black cloth to reveal a white sword with a gold hilt and blue hand. The blade was contained in an intricate white sheath, and looked incredibly well cared for.

“This is Crocea Mors, the Sword your Great Grandfather used in the war.” His father explained. “it’s yours now.”

Jaune speechlessly accepted the sword as it was handed to him. It was light enough to be handled with ease, but heavy enough to be able to gain some power in a swing, and it was perfectly balanced.

“Dad…I …… Thanks” Jaune stammered.

“Don’t sweat it kiddo” His father ruffled his hair. “It was rightfully yours anyway.”  
“I can do something else for you though.”

“What” Jaune questioned.

“I need you to close your eyes and concentrate” His father instructed him.

Immediately, Jaune began to panic.                                


Gripping his shoulders tightly, His father began to speak in an unfamiliar language.

_“Sous la force du soleil, je l'appelle._

_Grâce à la puissance de la lune, je fais signe._

_Je appelle à ton âme, et de le dissocier._

_Avec mes mots, je gratuites Votre Aura, et avec mon épée, je te protégerai._

_Alors dis-je, Jason, le septième Arc”_

As the final part of the passage began, something began to happen.

A dark crimson energy began to race up his father’s arms, and the moment he finished speaking, it flared and he was sent flying away, landing a good 30ft away in a patch of shrubbery, Clearly unconscious.

Horrified, Jaune did the only thing he could think of.

 

He ran.

Turning on his heal, he snatched up Crocea Mors and ran inside.  
Grabbing his backpack from the rack in the front room, he ran to the pantry and began to throw in food, before running upstairs and tossing in clothes.

Once he was done, he sprinted past his mother who had just emerged from her room.

“Jaune, honey, wait” she called desperately. “What’s wrong”

But by the time she was finished speaking, he was out the door and long gone.

 

* * *

* * *

 

**  
I hope you enjoyed this chapter of Shepherd of Fire, and in case you were wondering, here is the translation for the passage that Jason Arc says, here it is.**

_Under the might of the sun, I call._

_With the power of the moon, I beckon._

_I summon to your soul, and unbind it._

_With my words I free your Aura, and with my sword, i protect you._

_So say I, Jason, the seventh Arc_

 

**That's the second chapter. I hope  you enjoyed it.**  
As always, feedback would be amazing.  
I'm always looking to improve.  


**Thanks for reading.  
-3rdDegreeBurns**


	3. See I have pity in watching you suffer

**Chapter 3- See I have pity in watching you suffer**

 

Jaune knew why he had to run away. There was no way he could explain what had happened with his father, or why it’d happened. They wouldn’t get why he made his decision. They probably wouldn’t even believe his story. It was better that he had ran away.

Jaune sat, shivering, under the boughs of a large oak tree, chilled to the bone by the rain dripping through the tree.  
His attempts at a fire lay a few feet in front of him. By the time he had arrived at the oak, the rain had set in and everything was damp.

A few days had passed since the incident with his father.  
After the initial fright had passed, he had begun to think of going back, but the thoughts of explaining everything that had happened that night had eventually pushed him away from that idea.

The first two nights had been warm, and comfortable, and he had been able to sleep without any need for extra warmth, but the third night had been colder, as though it was an omen of the nights to come.  
He had run out of food later on the next day, and despite having the skills to hide himself from the search parties his family had inevitably sent after him, he lacked the knowledge, and the tools, to hunt for food, and possessed no knowledge on what plants were safe to eat, and what weren’t.

The heavens opened later on that night, and the rain poured down, drenching him as he trudged through the woods, his stomach growing increasingly aware of the lack of food.  
He had ended the day at the base of the oak tree, and had set about trying to light a fire to keep him warm, but all of his attempts were thwarted by the rain.

After everything that had happened of the last four years, it all came to an end here, all because he couldn’t keep warm.  
The cold began to seep into his muscles, and the urge to sleep almost overtook him, but he fought it, knowing that if he did, he would never wake up again.

“So this is how it ends?” a familiar voice spoke. “Alone, shivering, weak?”

The words snapped Jaune out of the cloud that had overtaken his mind, and he stiffly turned towards the speaker.

The Elderly grey haired man sat down on the ground next to him, making himself comfortable before looking at the failed fire and snapping his finger.  
Crimson red flames immediately sprung up, and Jaune moved forward as quickly as possible to warm himself up.

“After four years, surely you realise who I am.”

“Y-you’re th-the devil.” Jaune chattered. “I did-d my research.”

The devil smiled, showing off his too-perfect teeth.

“indeed” he spoke once again. “and I’m sure by now you’ve realised that when I took you’re Aura, your _Soul,_ I left something behind.”

“I’ve always felt different since that day. What is it?” Jaune asked.

The devil gestured towards the flames.

“Hellfire” he answered. “For reasons you will not be able to understand, I require a champion. What happened on that day was not my doing, but because of it, you fit the bill nicely.”

“What is this hellfire? What does it do?” Jaune inquired.

“Hellfire, by definition, is the polar opposite to Aura, and thus, cannot coexist with it. They react when they combine, and the reactions can be varied. Your father experienced one of the, more, tamer reactions.” He explained. “Aura, by nature, is defensive. It hardens the body, and shields the user from harm, both passively and actively. It is versatile, and can be, occasionally, used in offensive techniques or powers.”

“Oh…kay?” Jaune didn’t really understand everything that was being said, but was doing his upmost best in following along. “But, what does it do?”

“It is like Aura, in the sense that it fills the body as the soul would, but it is not a defensive power.  
It is a power of unparalleled offense, with minor defensive properties. We’ll get to the offense later. Right now, we’re focusing on basic control.”

With yet another gesture, the Devil put the flames out. No heat remained, and only the charred wood revealed that a fire had been there at all.

“Light the fire” The devil instructed.

“How” Jaune asked, shivering slightly as the cold began to worm its way back into him.

“Use your instincts boy”

Jaune raised his hand and pointed at the fire and willed the flames to reappear.

Nothing happened

“Keep trying. You’ll get it eventually.” The devil encouraged. “If you don’t, you’ll die, and I’ll just have to find a new person.”

And with that, he stood up, took a single step, shimmered, and disappeared.

Despair immediately took a hold of Jaune. How was he supposed to do this?  
It didn’t make any sense. How were instincts supposed to help him here?

Over and over again, he pointed at the scorched sticks and willed them to re-light, but time and time again, they remained as cold as they had been before the devil had lit them.

And all the while, the cold seeped further and further into him.

Slowly, fear of dying, and the pain of the cold morphed into something else. An anger at the world for being so unfair, for forcing all of this upon him when all he wanted was to be normal.   
It was an anger that blotted out all rational thoughts, and threatened to explode out of him in a crazed roar.

He pointed one final time at the fire, and willed the flames to appear.

And appear they did. In a small inferno, raging amongst the half consumed sticks.

All at once, the anger left him, leaving him tired and empty, but warm.

Far warmer than the fire that he had just created.


	4. I know the feeling of being damned alone

The music from a distant club echoed down the street into the ally way, adding a festive theme to a situation that should have been anything but festive.

Roman Torchwick sat on a crate as he observed the small mob of thugs, henchmen, and gang members, all criminals, and all potential customers.

“Alright, listen up” he called out. “You’re all here to buy my merchandise, so look close to see what I have to offer.”

They all stood in silence as he spoke, not daring to interrupt him.

“When you buy from me, you buy the best, so let’s get started on our first product.” He said.  
“SDC 460 dust combat rifles, military issue. Fires 5.56x45mm rounds, and has a 30 round magazine, but if hooked up to the right equipment, it can fire off up to 700 bullets per minute.”

He paused for a moment to let his words sink in, before continuing.

“This is standard military issue in Atlas, but is strictly controlled, and is rarely sold anywhere else.  
Thankfully, my employer managed to snag a few…… before they ended up on the shelves in Atlas.”

“I sell them by the case, with 30 guns in each case, and 6,300 rounds included.

So with that said, let’s start the auction. The beginning price i-”

A new voice interrupted Torchwick as he was about to begin the bidding.

“This is nice and all, but I really can’t let you distribute these guns, or anything else, for that matter”

The speaker was a tall, gangly blonde boy, wearing a black hoody with white armour over it.

“Kid, isn’t it past your bed time? Go home, and maybe we’ll forget about all of this” one of spoke, approaching the boy. He smiled boldly in reply to the threa-offer.  
“You should move on, before things get bad for you” the thug threatened.

The boy cast a lazy glance at the thug before blurring into action, throwing forward his hand and grabbing the thug by the face.

A pulse of crimson light flared briefly around the boy’s hand, and then the thugs head, and there was a crack as the thug was sent flying, his body limp.

“Get him” Torchwick barked, and the criminals jumped forward, all manner of weapons drawn and ready to kill the boy.

“All this for me?” the boy quipped “you shouldn’t have.”

The same crimson light flared around the boy’s arms and they burst into dark flames, and then they began to change. Fingers elongated into claws, spikes appeared at the elbows, and a chitinous type of material began to form over the shoulders, forming shoddy pauldrons.  
And last but not least, cracks began to split over the skin, revealing a lava-like glow deep within his arms.

And then the kid drew a sword off his back, and held it in front of him, and in the sound of metal being wrenched into new shapes, the plain long sword began to change.

The Blade elongated widened, and then a crack appeared in the middle, opening up and making a hole in the middle of the blade, in which the crimson flames began to coalesce.  
The hilt twisted, and formed into the face of a demonic skull.

The thugs backed off, a few of them on the verge of running outright, and Torchwick ducked away, and began to load as many crates as possible into the back of a truck. No point losing merchandise.

The Boy spoke, and this time, his voice was different, sounding as if another voice overlapped his.

“ **Shall we begin?** ” he snarled.

His voice snapped the thugs out of whatever trance they may have been in, and they began to charge him.

The first criminal reached the boy and swung, his red fire axe going missing as the boy dropped to the ground. The boy didn’t miss the opening the thug had presented, nor did he waste anytime capitalising on it, lunging in with a straight punch to the jaw, knocking the thug to the ground and out of the fight as the same crimson glow transferred over to him and knocked him out.

The second criminal was dispatch in much the same way, and the third and fourth learnt little from their predecessor’s fate.  
Thugs five and six adapted on what the others had done, choosing to attack together, from two sides. The boy stepped forward, his sword clashing with the axe that five wielded, before he pirouetted on his heal, disengaging his blade and following up with a series of slashes and parries that knocked the thug back a few paces.

Thug number six jumped into the fray, choosing to attack while the boy was distracted by his partner. This tactic did him little good, because his luck was horrible and he chose to attack just as the boy had pushed his partner back. The boy spun on his heal, swinging the flat of his blade around, collecting the force of his spin on his blade, and hitting thug six on the side of the head, knocking him clean out.

The rest of the thugs, numbering at about 17, chose to attack as a mob, hoping to overpower the boy through numbers.  
What followed was little more than a non-lethal massacre.

The thugs lay groaning on the ground as the boy strolled merrily towards one remaining criminal.  
He’d hung back throughout the entire fight, choosing to instead let his comrades fight the battle.

“ **Are you going to surrender? Or do I have to put you down too?** ” The boy asked.  
He got his answer when a woman walked out of the nearby ally entrance, noticed him, the bodies, and then screamed.

The thug lunged, grabbed the woman’s arm, and slung her around, digging a knife into her neck.

“You’re going to let me walk out of here, or god help you, I will slit her throat.” He threatened.

The boy’s eyes hardened.

“ **Let her go** ” He commanded. “ **or your fate will be a lot worse than a headache and jail time.** ”

He began to back towards the ally entrance, and when he reached it, he plunged the knife into her stomach and threw the woman aside, then ran for the street.

Arms and sword back to normal, the boy rushed to the woman on the ground.

“Are you okay? How bad is it?” he rushed.

“I’ll be fine” she gasped out. “Go get him, then call an ambulance.”

Sirens began to wail, and she smiled weakly.

“I’ll get him” he spoke, and then he was gone.

* * *

 

The thug ran blindly through the streets, pushing past civilians, not caring if he knocked any of them over.

When he was sure that he was no longer being followed, he slowed down, turning down yet another ally way and moving to a courtyard off the street.

A bottle clinked on the ground, as if it had been kicked by someone walking, and the thug turned around sharply, checking over his shoulder.  
Seeing nothing, he turned back to the front and continued walking.

He suddenly froze up as he felt the hot breath of something on his neck, right before he was grabbed by the shirt and thrown against a nearby wall.

He was spun around, coming face-to-face with his attacker, and was horrified by what he saw.

“ **That was your one chance at redemption** ”

How was it possible for a voice to come from that burning maw?

“ **You are beyond salvation, and must be purged from this world accordingly.”**

“WHO ARE YOU?” The thug yelled.

“ **I am the Shepherd of Fire. I AM YOUR END** ”

A large clawed hand gripped the last thug by the face, and crimson energy began to flow from the arm into the thug…. and kept on flowing.

The thug began to thrash and scream behind the hand, before being abruptly let go.

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME!!” he screamed.

“ **Enjoy the flames of Hell? That is only a taste of what is to come. And I promise you, you will wish you were burning in the flames of a thousand suns long before I, or the Devil, are done with you.** ”

The thug stumbled away from the monstrosity, clutching his stomach as he did.

Crimson flame began to leak from his eyes, ears mouth and nose, and then his hands began to burn.

Slowly, agonisingly, the hellfire consumed him, until, with a final scream, the thug was consumed.

“ **May you burn for you sins in the depths of Hell.** ”

 

**_ 6 years ago. _ **

_“You survived. Good” the devil said. “I have need of you.”_

_Morning had come and gone before he had finally appeared again_

_“What do you want with me?” Jaune asked._

_“You’re to be my champion, against forces that shouldn’t exist.”_

_“The Grimm?”_

_“Yes. The Grimm.”_

_“How am I to do that?”_

_“Learn from me, and you’ll be able to do a whole lot more than just that.”_

* * *

**Quickly uploading chapters 3 and 4 before I go and pass out.**  
**Hopefully people enjoy.**  
**As always, feedback is appreciated.**  
**Thanks for reading.**

**-3rdDegreeBurns**

 


	5. I got a story book of my own.

** Chapter 5 ** **– I got a story book of my own.**

“Remind me again how beating up thugs is supposed to help us?” Jaune asked.

“It’s not” The Devil replied.

They sat together in the lounge-room of a penthouse suite. The walls and ceiling where a dazzling white, and the floor was made up of marble tiles. The setting sun could been seen through floor-to-ceiling windows, and shone over them, illuminating what would otherwise be a lightless room.

“You mean to tell me that I’ve been out hunting down criminals for the last two week…… for no reason?” Jaune’s voice rose incredulously.

“Not at all” The Devil countered. “What you’ve been doing is training”

“Training? That’s literally all I’ve been doing for the past 6 years.”

“Not entirely for the last 6 years. There was that holiday you took in Vacuo last year”

“We don’t talk about that, remember.”

“Can’t see why. Lucky bastard.”

“You literally have the power to change your appearance any time you want. It’s not my fault you choose to look like an old man.”

“Pssh. Whatever.”

“ok, back on topic.” Jaune continued. “What is all this training for?”

“As a Deity, I have the power to be several places at once, both materially, and immaterially.  
It’s a useful ability. It allows me to gather information on our enemy.” He paused for breath, before continuing.  
“However, I’ve run into a bit of a problem. I’ve found a place I cannot enter, and that in itself is….. Troubling.”

“And you want me to go check it out for you” Jaune concluded. “Why the training though? It can’t be that dangerous.”

“The place I will be sending you is Beacon academy. The entirety of the grounds are blocked from me, and I want to know why.”

“Ah. A hunter school” Jaune said. “That explains the training. One problem though.”

“Yes?”

“Officially, I haven’t finished my general schooling, which means I’m technically ineligible to attend.”

“I know a guy.” The Devil waved his hand dismissively. “He can sort you out with fake records, and all of that. You want a name change?”

“Nah.  We’re far enough away from Patch that no one will recognise me. Besides, my family thinks I died 6 years ago.”

“Ok then. I’ll get you booked in for the process tomorrow.”

**6 years ago**

_"The style of combat your father was training you for revolves around aura, and constant defence._  
Both are which something you don't have because of the power you possess.  
No matter how hard you trained, you wouldn't have improved with it." 

_"So how do I fight then?"_

_They stood under the boughs of the great oak tree, water still dripping from its branches.  
The now cold campfire lay to their right, reduced to a mass of charcoal and ashes from the unnatural fire, and the Midday sun shined overhead, but failed to break through the foliage above._

_"Hellfire is a power that coverts speed, power and aggression. Dodge all attacks possible, and block the attacks you cannot dodge."_

_"So a good defence is a great offence, basically?"_

_"Indeed" the devil responded, nodding his head. "Now you learn how to channel your power through objects. Try now on your sword."_

_"Do I just focus on it?"_

_"Yes."_

_Jaune drew his blade, and held it aloft._  
The steel glinted in the light as he began to concentrate, and slowly, the same crimson light that had rendered his father unconscious, began to flow over the metal.  
And then it began to change, the sound of tortured metal ringing out over the clearing.

_"Hellfire is not a natural part of this world, and it warps almost everything it touches."_

_"Even me?" Jaune asked._

_"Try channelling it though your arm" the Devil instructed._

_Jaune complied, and then gasped as the crimson glow flowed up his arm and watched on as it began to change._

_"It doesn't hurt?" he said, eyes filled with curiosity._

_"You are now a part of two worlds. This one, and the Abyss, my home realm." He explained.  
"This allows you the control you have over this force and immunity to its more….unpleasant effects." _

_"Cool" Jaune commented. "And what if I channel through my entire body?"_

_"Then you will be a force to be reckoned with."_

_"Cool"_


	6. Don’t you see I am your pride

** Chapter 6 ** **– Don’t you see I am your pride**

“So this guy you wanted me to see….” Jaune began, but hesitated, the pounding of the music interrupting his thoughts. “He owns a nightclub”

“Yes.”  The Devil replied. “Or rather, his family owns it. He is simply the manager of it.”

They stood outside a well-lit building in one of the shadier parts of Vale, under the glare of several goons that looked quite similar to those who he had beaten up and stopped just the previous day.

“And I take it he’s not the most honest fellow?” He inquired as they walked by the goons and into the club.

“Yes. But he is one of the better people I deal with.” The Devil responded. “We have a longstanding agreement. I would explain more, but it’s really not my place.”

“Fair enough. Let’s get this over with then” Jaune braced himself as the main doors to the club proper swung open, and the full force of the music washed over him.  
Dear god. People actually liked this stuff?  
The dancer floor of the club was packed with people who quite clearly did enjoy such music

The Devil took his shoulder and lead him over to the bar, catching the attention of a largely built man behind the counter.

“Dev” he called out over the music, “It’s great to see you. What can I get you?”

“Junior” ‘Dev’ said, his velvet voice cutting through the music, “I need to make use of your skills. Is there somewhere we can talk in private?”

“Yeah. Out the back” Junior gestured behind him, and Dev and Jaune made their way behind the counter before following him through a door.

The room they entered was slightly chilly; as if they had entered a cooler set on its lowest setting, and was filled with an extremely large assortment of alcohol, the boxes and crates they were stored in taking up a majority of the room.

 

“What can I help you with?” Junior asked, motioning for them to take a seat on a crate, doing so himself.

“Jaune here needs some fake identification.” Dev explained. “Well, almost fake. He wants to keep his name, but he needs his educational records and Combat records forged.  The whole nine yards.”

“Did he not go through school like everyone else?” Junior asked.

“No” Jaune interrupted. “Dev here pulled me out when I was about 12”

“That’s not exactly true.” He argued back. “I was just the causal factor of you running away. That’s not the same thing”

“I know the required subjects. Dev schooled me in them.” Jaune shot him a sour look choosing to ignore Dev’s previous words.  “Definitely not a high point of our time together.”

“In my defence, I’ve never had to teach before” he shot back. “The combat was easy enough, however”

Junior looked back and forth between the two men, a bemused expression adorning his features.

“Right. Let me get this straight.” Junior cleared his throat. “You need me to forge you records so you can basically exist again? Get a job, a bank account, a house, the whole lot? Why combat records though?”

“Beacon” Dev said casually. “I need him to be able to attend Beacon”

“You wha-” Junior practically choked on air. “You want to get him into Beacon, as in **‘** the best Hunter academy this side of the world **’** Beacon? Do you have any idea how difficult that will be?”

“I assumed you would be able to do it?” Dev countered. “Should I assume otherwise”

“Damn right I’ll do it.” He accepted. “I’ve been looking for a challenge”

“That doesn’t comfort me” Jaune muttered.

Dev rose to his feet, stretching as he did so “I’ll leave you to it then. I have some other business to attend to, unfortunately.”

Without so much as a word more, he vanished into thin air, leaving only the rush of air and the sound of beating wings to mark his exit. 

“Well that happened” Jaune said, an awkward expression on his face.

“Don’t sweat it kid.” Junior spoke, an amused smile playing across his face. “You get used to it”

“So…. The records?” Jaune started. “Do you need any help from me for anything, or should I just wait outside.”

“Actually, since you’re here, and you’re a friend of Dev’s, there are a few things you could help me with.” He admitted. “Normally I’d make his stuff up with a small degree of accuracy, but actually getting you to do a few tests would help me pin exactly where you’re at in terms of your education.”

“That makes sense, I guess”

“Since you’re going to be living in the shadow of these records for an indefinite amount of time, we might as well make sure you can live up to them. I’ll be right back, just wait here.”

Junior quickly sat up and walked through the door, returning shortly with a scroll in his hands, along with some paper and a few pieces of paper.  
Tapping the screen a few times, he bought up an app.

“This test here has about 50 questions. Answer them all and show me your answers, alongside any working out you may need to do.”

“Damnit.  I hate written tests.” Jaune complained. “I was hoping you’d ask me questions, and I’d answer them”

“Think of this as preparation for the Beacon education system. I hear there’s a teacher there who is very fond of essays and written tests.”

Jaune just groaned before sitting down to begin working.

“And then I divided this by that, and got that” Jaune finished explaining to Junior.

They sat at a booth to the side of the club, hunched over a sheet of paper that held the answer to a rather complicated. The music boomed away, but from their secluded corner, it was noticeably more quiet, allowing them to speak in moderate tones

“Ah, clever. I would have done it another way.” He complimented.

“I actually don’t mind math” Jaune admitted. “Except calculus. Fuck calculus.”

“I agree. Fuck Calculus.” They shared a slight grin, as Jaune remembered something.

“When we were entering the club, Dev said you had some sort of agreement with him. Do you mind if I ask what it is?” Jaune asked, and upon seeing Juniors frown, hurried to say “You don’t have to if you don’t want to. I was just curious.”

“No no, I don’t mind at all.” He reassured. “It’s just if any other person asked that question, I would give a bullshit answer.”

“Ah” Jaune Hmm’d. “Why’s that?”

“Well, you know the truth.” He supplied. “You know who Dev is. What he is, I should say, and that other beings like him exist, and that they live on other planes of existence.”

Jaune nodded, and Junior continued.

“When I was 21, I was finally inducted into the heart of the family business. That is to say, things that fall into the moral grey area, and sometimes into the black.” He started. “Before that, the most I had done was some light paperwork for some of our more…. Legitimate business ventures. This club being a prime example.”

Jaune nodded once again, showing his attention to the story, and Junior continued talking.

“I, alongside a small team, was tasked with escorting a large shipment of questionable goods through some of the shadier parts of vale.” He noticed Jaune’s look at the word ‘Shady’, and amended. “By shady I mean an area of town that belonged to no one. My family had claimed most of downtown Vale, and a few other families. Some held areas given to them by my family. Some didn’t.”

He broke off to motion to a goon in red shades that hastily ran to the bar and bought back a glass of alcohol. He looked questioningly at Jaune, who shook his head. He then motioned the goon to leave, before starting up again.

“About two thirds of the way through the mission, we were ambushed by a rival family who were Vying for our place in Vale. The entire team was killed that night, myself included.”

He took a sip of alcohol, sighing at both the taste, and the point in the story.

“I came to in a courtroom, with a line of people in front of me, and crowded seats either side of me.  
I watched as the line moved forward, and those in front of me either moved through a gate to the right of the main podium, or moved to the left, and through a flaming gate. One by one, the people in front of me had their fates decided, including my team, until it was my turn.”

He took a swig of alcohol, and then another, before continuing with a frown on his face.

“I looked up at the podium, and into the eyes of someone who I firmly believed was not human. His skin was emaciated and pale where it wasn’t rotting, and he spoke to me, telling me that I was to be sentenced to a place called Asphodel. That was before a Voice called out, telling the being on the podium to wait. After that, I remember blacking out, and when I came to again, there was an old man pulling me to my feet as everyone else in the room, many hundred, possibly thousands, got off the ground in various states of confusion. He told me that I was to be granted life again, on a few conditions. That old man, as you could have guessed, was Dev.  
He had me resurrected into my old life so that I could be his man in the Criminal world, and that doing that would atone for any of the sins I had committed in the past, or would commit in the future. Generally, I stay clear of anything in the black zone now, like murder or drug dealing, and the like. Not to say I dealt in that stuff before.”

“Wow. That sounds pretty surreal” Jaune spoke, lifting his head of his propped up hand.

“Yeah” Junior admitted. “It was.”

He took another sip of alcohol, and choked as Dev appeared next to him, once again being followed by the beating of wings.

“Forget what I said, kid” Junior gasped for air. “You never get used to it”

“Junior, can we please speak privately again?” Dev asked politely. “I have a few more things we need to discuss.”

He sighed, and Clambered out of the booth, being followed by Dev.

“Sure thing boss” he said, his voice catching a few times as he heaved as he breathed deeply.

“Jaune, just hang around for a bit. Get a drink or something.” Dev said. “I’ll be done shortly.”

Jaune waved his hand in acknowledgement as they both walked away, before getting to his feet and making his way to the dance floor.

Might as well try dancing, he thought as he manoeuvred his way through the gyrating bodies of the dancers to a place where he could dance without being noticed by the more sober people hanging around the edges of the mob.  
Dev was going to be a lot longer than he thought he would be.

Time passed as he let his body move to the beat of the electronic music, occasionally dancing with strangers, all women, but more than often by himself, before he decided he’d had enough.

Moving out of the mob, he went to head for the bar, but accidently crashed into someone as he attempted to avoid a drunkard stumbling towards the club entrance.

Turning to apologise to the unfortunate person, his breath caught in his throat as he saw whom he’d just bumped into.

A beautiful young woman with Blonde hair and Lilac eyes stared at him, and he stared back.

“Jaune?”

“Yang?”

And then his eyes widened in alarm as hers hardened, turning a delightful shade of red, and her fist rocketed towards him.

* * *

 

 

A Thesis, By Doctor Oobleck  
  
_Hellfire, by definition, is the polar opposite of aura, the power of the soul.  
Aura is positively charged energy, whereas hellfire is negatively charged, and thus, does not exist in the natural world. The physical manifestation of hellfire and its effects on substances, metals, and organic compounds are merely bi-products of the negative energy reacting with the positively charged elements of this plane of existence._

_My findings on the results of such reactions can be found on the next page._

**If you were intrigued by that little extract from my side project, or you otherwise enjoyed this chapter, please feel free to leave a review telling me what you liked about it, or a few places I could improve, and if you haven’t already done so, please follow and favourite, because that really shows how much people enjoy this.**

**That’s all I have for now.  
I hope you have a lovely day/night, wherever you may be In this wide world.**


	7. Agent of wealth

** Chapter 7  ** **–** **Agent of wealth**

If Jaune were to have looked back on this event, and told the story, he would have loved to have told someone that when Yang swung at him, he backflipped away, dodging her mighty blow by a hairsbreadth, and then followed up with a devastating counter attack.  
He would have settled with her missing.  
Instead, he was treated with an excellent view of the ceiling, and the brief experience of what it was like to be a bird, before he came crashing down on top of a table.

Stunned by the blow, both by its power and the fact that it came from someone who used to be his best friend, he laid there for a moment, before coming to his senses and rolling off the table, to the side.  
Narrowly avoiding the axe kick that had previously been rocketing towards his face.  
The table, already weakened by his full weight being brought to bear on it previously, exploded into a cloud of splinters and jagged spars of wood as Yang’s foot impacted against it.

Jaune tuck rolled forwards, desperate to get out of the precarious situation he had suddenly got stuck in, as the previous occupants of the table shoved past him, screaming in terror. All the bystanders began to run as well, as he began to either dodge or knock blow after blow to the side as Yang came for him, practically snarling in his face. Many of her missed blows hit chairs and other tables as he weaved through that area.

“Yang” he called desperately, moving onto the dance floor, away from breakable objects, eyeing the destruction she was leaving in her wake “What the fuck are you doing”

“You left everyone!” She roared. “You left your family! Your friends! EVERYONE WHO EVER CARED ABOUT YOU!”

“I HAD TO!” Jaune shouted out as he avoided a right hook. “I CAN’T SAY WHY, BUT I HAD TO!”

“THAT’S NOT GOOD ENOUGH!” She jabbed forward, catching him in the chest.

“THAT’S ALL I HAVE, DAMNIT!” He shouted as he fell backwards, turning it into a roll.

“IF YOU WON’T TELL ME, I’LL BEAT THE ANSWERS OUT OF YOU!”

“WHY DO YOU CARE SO MUCH!”

“I CARED BECAUSE YOU WERE MY FRIEND, YOU ASSHOLE! AND YOU JUST LEFT, LEAVING EVERONE WHO LOVED YOU BEHIND!”

“ **YO** U DON’T UNDERSTAND!” Jaune bellowed as he struck back for the first time, his fist a bloody crimson colour.   
Yang yelled in pain as his fist made contact with her stomach, sending her reeling backwards.

“ **YOU CAN N** EVER UNDERSTAND! **NONE OF MY LIFE WOULD MAKE SENSE TO YOU!!!”**

“I don’t care about you anymore.” She said, speaking quietly for the first time  
 “But for the sake of your family, I’m going to beat you into submission, and drag you back to patch, to your family”

Jaune felt a chill run through him. No, he wouldn’t go back. He made a deal to save them, and he would keep that deal. To go back would mean putting them in danger.  
And that.  
He.  
Cou **ldn’t.  
Stand.**

He felt the first traces of fire run through his muscles, thickening them, building them out.  
Then he felt the bone structure in his legs shift, becoming denser, and more solidly built.  
The fighting stance he had adopted when he struck back became more solid as his centre of gravity shifter, becoming even and unmoving.

He could feel his skin under his clothes cracking and hardening as the energy ran through it, but thankfully the changes didn’t progress beyond his chest, arms or legs.  
Changes like this could be explained by use of a semblance, but he wasn’t eager to telegraph his power to everyone, especially when the darker parts of the criminal underworld we’re undoubtedly aware of some form of monstrosity made of fire and stone was going after their goons.

“ **No!** ” he snarled, his voice coming through harsher, Almost ancient. “ **I’m not going back! I made a deal to keep them safe! I won’t go bACK ON THAT!** ” and with those final words, he went on the offence, attempting to duck under her cover and beginning to slam into her. Short brutal punches wreathed in crimson light.  
Yang blocked as many blows as she could, but each one threw her cover out a little bit more.  
She wasn’t expecting the ferocity with which Jaune fought. He had been a lousy fighter when she knew him, all those years ago, and this change threw her more than she would have liked to admit.  
She knew that he was going to get to her soon if she didn’t do something fast, and it would likely not be pleasant. Her Aura was absorbing the blows, but the pain came in full force, which was both unusual and extremely worrying. It usually absorbed the pain of a blow, as well as a majority of the impact.

As Jaune came in for another savage blow, she broke off her block and ducked under it, allowing his fist to swing over her head. Thinking him to be off balance, She put her weight forward and attempted to tackle him to the ground so she could rain blow after blow on him, unleashing her semblance fuelled fury onto him.

She slammed into him, and was shocked to find that he barely moved.  
She felt ridges beneath clothes as he pounded a fist into his gut, and pulled away as he coughed slightly and instinctively went to cover his stomach.

The news of this supposed deal Jaune had made to keep his family safe was interesting, but was a matter for later.  
She could interrogate him on the flight back to Patch, when he was thousands of feet in the air, with nowhere to go.

“I DON’T CARE.  YOU’RE COMING WITH ME” She bought her semblance fully to bear with an uppercut in an attempt to end the fight with a single, solid blow, which she knew she could do.

A dull ‘Thwump’ emanated from in front of her, popping her ears and sending her flying backwards.

“THAT IS ENOUGH” Dev shouted. “You’re acting like Children. Look at what you’ve done. The destruction you’ve caused.”

Yang pulled herself off the ground, several metres away from where she first was, glaring at the old man who had appeared from a door behind the bar.

“Back off old timer” She said. “This is between me and him.”

“If it concerns him, it concerns me.” He spoke coldly, before noticing Jaune’s expression.

A look of Pure, undiluted Rage.

“Jaune” he spoke to him, gentler now, before speaking up when he Didn’t respond. “JAUNE! Calm yourself. The fight is over.”

Jaune’s breath came slower as his anger receded, and the changes made to his biology faded away, returning him to normal.

“Why does it concern you!” She spoke fiercely to Dev.

“I’m what you would call his Guardian” Dev spoke, turning to her again. “What he does is my business, until such time as he decides it isn’t.”

“Now go home Girl” He dismissed her without a second thought.

“YOU ASSHOLE!” she roared, trying to move towards Him as an invisible force held her back. “I’M TRYING TO BRING HIM BACK TO HIS FAMILY!”

“ **LEAVE NOW** ” Dev thundered, the angles of his face changing, making him look ancient and inhuman. “ **and if you tell Jaune’s family that he was here, I will ensure that all the criminal charges of this fight are pressed against you, and you never get the chance to become a huntress.** ”

It hurt terribly to even consider it, but she knew she had to agree to what he said. She had to become a huntress. She had to look out for Ruby, and find her mother.  
Wait. How did he know she was planning to be a huntress?

“ **Go! Now!** ” The Dev thundered, and as he uttered those words, she found herself automatically following what he said. He emitted an otherworldly presence that pressed against her, and set made her feel nauseous.

She shot both him and Jaune one last, hate-filled glare before she stopped fighting the presence and turned and left.

Jaune felt exhaustion bubble up from the fight, and merely turned to Dev, his face not betraying how rattled he felt after seeing his best friend after all these years and having her attempt to knock him unconscious and practically kidnap him.

“She’s not going to Beacon, is she?” he asked, resigned to already knowing the answer


End file.
